Former VP Dota 2 Player Speaks About Career Break and His Reputation as a "Toxic" Person
About Ending His Career
When asked by the host if he is currently a professional player, Daxak stated that he has currently stepped away from competitive Dota.
"Well, not anymore, not anymore. <...> Well, I don't plan to for now. For now, it's for an indefinite period. <...> Well, like, who knows? Never say never," Kuzmin noted.
About the Reputation of a "Toxic" Person
The host brought up the widespread opinion online that Daxak is a "super toxic" person and suggested that this character trait might have prevented him from achieving great success. Nikita did not deny this thesis.
"Yes, it's just a fact. It's just a fact," he succinctly confirmed.
About Memes and Advice for Young Players
During the conversation, they recalled the famous moment with player Afoninje, who abandoned the game after a failed play in a tournament. Daxak admitted that he used to get upset about such situations and jokes, but has now changed his attitude.
"Before, you know, I always got upset about all this bullshit. But probably, advice for young players: 'Don't give a damn about all of it, any memes are actually a plus for you.' You just don't understand it yet. <...> Memes are really almost always a plus," the esports athlete shared his experience, emphasizing the importance of media presence.
Daxak jokingly described himself as a "meme creator," noting that "the number of meme moments I have is just off the charts."
About the Legendary Fail on Slark
Nikita humorously commented on another famous meme related to his play on Slark, when he tried to find wards with the hero's passive ability without having reached level six (before the patch that allowed it).
"I was looking into the future, because in the future they changed Slark's passive, and he could search before... level six. <...> I just knew the patch and actually I was already searching, thinking the patch was out," Daxak joked.
He also ironically added that "the patch only came out because of me," as he supposedly personally knows Gabe Newell and was thus "written into Dota history."
About Playing Muerta and Winning
Despite choosing Muerta for the challenge, Daxak admitted he has difficulty hitting the Dead Shot ability.
"I'm, let's say, not a professional shooter, but we'll manage," he said at the beginning.
During the match, missing his abilities, Nikita explained his tactic by saying that professionals often don't skill that ability at all, preferring "pluses" (attributes).
In the end, despite mistakes and poor execution of the hero, Daxak's team won. The player himself admitted that his teammates' contribution was decisive:
"What were the chances of winning this game at all? Bro, my team... They are carrying me. <...> I buy myself a MoM and I just farm creeps, I don't even need to hit my skills," Daxak summarized the game.
The match ended in victory, and the host noted that Nikita turned out to be a "very pleasant dude."
Earlier, Team Spirit midlaner recalled his experience playing with Nikita Kuzmin, calling him a person with an extremely difficult character. The world champion noted that, despite communication difficulties, it was the demanding nature and specific approach of the former captain that had a key influence on his professional growth.
Recently, streamer Ilya Pivtsaev drew parallels between the current form of Crystallis and his failed performance period as part of Tundra Esports. The former Virtus.pro player criticized the carry for a lack of progress and unstable play, which prevents the team from achieving high results.